State Dems file complaint against conservative group

The state Democratic Party on Wednesday filed a complaint with Washington’s election watchdog against a conservative group, saying Americans for Prosperity Washington violated state law by refusing to say who paid for election advertisements.

“A critical part of maintaining the integrity of our elections process is transparency. Washington voters deserve to know who is behind campaign mailers, especially hit pieces like the ones AFPWA produced,” Dwight Pelz, head the Washington State Democrats, said in a statement. “AFPWA is refusing to disclose the source of its funds, in blatant violation of state law.”

Democrats want the Public Disclosure Commission to investigate. They say the AFPWA “has no record of any kind with the state,” despite the fact that the group paid for flyers and print ads critical of Democratic candidates for the state Legislature.

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling allows campaign donors to remain secret under certain conditions in federal elections. Washington state law requires disclosure of campaign contributions.

Pelz also rapped Republican Attorney General Rob McKenna. He noted that last month McKenna sued Seattle political consulting firm Moxie Media for multiple alleged violations of the state’s campaign financial disclosure law. Authorities say Moxie Media obscured the source of campaign support for an effort to oust a conservative Democrat the unions didn’t like.

“Our Republican Attorney General is suing Democrats who sponsored an independent expenditure, claiming they filed misleading reports; but he refuses to take legal action against Republicans who filed no reports”, Pelz said.